HAECKEL AND THE NEW ZOOLOGY 



clear that the establishment of lines of evolution is at 

 best merely a preparation for the all-important ques- 

 tion, Why have these creatures, man included, evolved 

 at all? That question goes to the heart of the new 

 zoological philosophy. A partial answer was, of course, 

 given by Darwin in his great doctrine of natural selec- 

 tion. But this doctrine, while explaining the preser- 

 vation of favorable variations, made no attempt to 

 account for the variations themselves. Professor 

 Haeckel's contribution to the subject consisted in the 

 revival of the doctrine of Lamarck, that individual 

 variations, in response to environmental influences, are 

 transmitted to the offspring, and thus furnish the ma- 

 terial upon which, applying Darwin's principle, evolu- 

 tion may proceed. This Lamarck-Haeckel doctrine 

 was under a cloud for a recent decade, during the 

 brief passing of the Weismannian myth, but it has now 

 emerged, and stands as the one recognized factor in the 

 origin of those variations whose cumulative preserva- 

 tion through natural selection has resulted in the evo- 

 lution of organic forms. 



But may there not be other factors, as yet unrecog- 

 nized, that supplement the Lamarckian and Darwinian 

 principles in bringing about this marvellous evolu- 

 tion of beings ? That, it would seem, is the most vital 

 question that the philosophical zoology of our genera- 

 tion must hand on to the twentieth century. For to- 

 day not even Professor Haeckel himself can give it 

 answer. 



VOL. V. 13 



